Death the Kid with Some Drum Sticks
by Miss Yuzuki
Summary: Death the Kid finds some friends through high school band, with an odd conductor. How will this affect his future and how will Lord Death react when he finds out? Not a crack fic, but will most likely seem like it at times.


**I am a band nerd at heart and I wanted to give a friend a favor. In her band, her director, has been there since the dinosaurs went extinct, hence the nickname "Nessie" referring to the Lochness Monster. All of the stories I've heard of him make him sound like a great man, and I want to make a bunch of other stories with anagrams of his name, like with this story.**

**Soul Eater is pretty cool too, so they kinda just melded together.**

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It was a couple of years ago when I stumbled onto a High School band playing as I walked passed the room of which they played in. I looked in the window and saw many teenagers hard at work, perfecting the music set in front of them. It looked… fulfilling to be able to do such things with nothing other than a piece of metal or a stick and manipulate the sounds to make beautiful compositions. Most of them looked as if they were hard of work, though some of them looked like they didn't have a care in the world.

I had been standing outside long enough for the conductor to notice me, I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks as I saw him acknowledge my presence. I heard the last bell of the day ring and most of the students file out of the large room.

I myself started to walk farther down the side walk when the teacher and conductor of the group walked out of the side doors leading directly from the band room to the side walk I was on. He turned and started walking my way.

"Hey, I saw ya watch us play. Did you enjoy it our music?" The conductor was a heavier set man who seemed to be in his late forties to early fifties, his face was adorned with years of wisdom and a peppered mustache. But what amazed me the most is he didn't recognize me, which was a relief at the time. I thanked myself on wearing casual clothes and a hat to cover my stripes.

"Yes, you are a talented group. I apologize for my staring, I have never witnessed a band in action before." I said as a smile rose to his face, giving him a jolly appearance.

"Naw, it's fine, some critique other than a judge's opinion is great every once in a while. Ya seemed a bit curious about what we do, would ya like to see the magic up close?" He placed his hands on his hips. I looked up at him and he pointed to the room.

"Y-you would be willing to show me?" His smile grew wider and he replied,"Of course, any kid deserves to have the ability and choice to make music in my book! The feeling you get when you make something like that is better than any medicine. You look like you need some cheering up too." He started to walk up to the door and motioned me to follow him inside.

We entered a small room before we made it into the actual room. The smaller room held two racks and hung up on them were garment bags. On the other side of the room, stacked up high, were boxes with various names written on them, some scribbled out. Next to the boxes were an extra large set of double door with "Audi" written on one of the doors. Towards the door connecting the Band room to this room was another set of double doors.

He turned around and looked at me, "By the way, what's your name?"I didn't know how to answer him. Previous experience told me I should be wise as to who I give my name to. Death the Kid didn't always sit well with people I've met.

I'd noticed I'd stopped walking and looked back at the strange man in front of me. "If you're not a serial killer or a rapist, I really don't have a problem with who you are. You could be Lord Death's son for all I care. You're still a kid and I can't deny someone the right to make music." I stared wide eyed at the teacher before he said,"What did I say something offensive?"

I didn't want to make my new friendly acquaintance feel bad, so I decided to take of the odd cap on my head and showed him my stripes."Oh." His smile turned into a look of shock.

"Yeah" I said scratching my head in embarrassment.

"That was a really good guess, goodness. Didn't expect to meet Death the Kid today."

"Sorry." I said looking down at my feet.

"Well like I said before, I don't mind if you're Lord Death's son. Music should be a promise to everyone." He said with a smile and made me gain one as well.

"Thank you Mr.?"

"Rotsen. Jeff Rotsen." He said as he held his hand out to me. I took it and shook it without hesitation. I could feel my smile widen and happiness rise in my chest. Someone didn't care that I was Lord Death's son. My doubts about this man vanished

I followed inside the band room to a drum set that was out in the room.

"We had stage band today, which is basically jazz band. It usually has a lot of saxophones, trumpets, some trombone and a mixed percussion. Including the drum set." He said as he sat down. "We usually have a bass guitar player, but this year no one knew how to play. I won't let someone touch my amps unless they know the instrument." He added.

"Are there other ensembles that you use here?" I asked, seeing as those instruments weren't a very wide selection.

"Yea, we alternate this time of year between Concert Band and Stage Band. Concert band is almost completely different that Stage band. The selections and tones of the music are generally different. Concert Band has less modern pieces or pop pieces when played in front of adjudicator. The ensemble is more varied than Stage Band, saxophones of all shapes and sizes, trumpets, French Horns, trombones, baritones, clarinets, flutes, tuba and more traditional percussion are used. In the late summer and beginning of the year we have Marching band. We go and play at the football games, on the sidelines and in the half-time show."

"So many of your students get to try out different positions and instruments?" I looked up, amazed that many students in this band got to try out different instruments and learn new things.

"I wish they would see it that way, many of them don't even try when we do Stage band, because many of them have to get completely new instruments." He said as he picked up a pair of drum sticks, oddly enough, covered in duck tape. Pink and black duck tape, what an odd combination.

H began showing me different techniques and styles, and even brought out a piece of music, "Unpitched percussion don't have a staff, which tell what notes to play, but the drum set are unique in the fact that there are many different percussion mixed with the snare and cymbals in a drum set.", and shared a lot of information with me until the sun began to go down and it grew dark outside.

"Who knew how fast time flies when you do what you love?" He said as he looked over at me. I had a chair and music stand out looking at the music he had showed me.

"You've showed me that this evening definitely. Thank you for showing me something as interesting and complicated as this. If you need anything, I usually pass by when I walk home in the evening." I said as I looked up and handed the folder, reorganized as an old habit of mine wouldn't let me leave it alone until it was fixed, back to the conductor.

"If you ever just want to play in the band, all you have to do is ask. We could always use someone with as much dedication and interest as you do." He said as he took the folder from my hands and stood up with a few pops from seemingly old joints.

I looked up at him, "You just want to make my day better don't you?" I said as I wiped the invisible dirt off my hoodie.

"I aim to please. But in all honesty, you look like you need some sort of companionship. Band can provide that and an academic venture."

"I don't know if Father would like it, but he's never home anyway, I might as well do something productive with my time." I said with hollow lightheartedness. It had always bothered me when Father had stopped spending as much time with me as he used to, but I brushed it off as his work did require him to be there 24/7.

That strange man had made me feel at home in a matter of minutes and almost literally took me in. He offered a great opportunity, which I thought it would be enjoyable to dip my toes in the water, as one might say.

"I'm not able to play an instrument yet though. Plus, I don't even attend school."

"I can easily teach you. I teach around 140 kids each day, I think I can handle someone as calm as you. The hoodlums in this class are the ruff 'n rowdy type of bunch, except for a few. You'll be a reminder that not all teenagers run around jabbing each other with drum sticks and mallets." He said as he put his head in his hands. He looked up and said, "It won't make too much of a difference that you don't come to this back tomorrow, I'll show some other instruments and I'll get some practice books out and let you look through them. You look promising." He said as we walked out into the cool spring evening.

I waved at him as I walked the opposite way. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all.

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I'd like to make a side note. This is a new account I made because the e-mail I used for the other one was compromised so I can't get on my other account until I fix that. So if my style seems familiar, that's probably why.


End file.
